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Apple iPhone 5

Overview

The iPhone 5 is a little taller than the iPhone4 and 4s to accommodate a larger screen but is also thinner and a bit lighter.

Apple has used a new camera module in this latest version and the operating system has also been updated, integrating some new features into the camera, like panoramas. These could previously have been installed as downloaded apps, but Apple has integrated them very well. Unfortunately the issue with lens flare that showed up in the iPhone 4 and 4s is still present and seems even worse.

The DxO Mark score of 72 is the same as the iPhone 4s score. This is an impressive achievement in the thinner body, but the breakdown of the scores shows some interesting differences. As a stills camera there is little to choose, but in the stabilization of video there has been a significant improvement from 28 points to 54 points, though it would have been good to see this improvement carried through to low light conditions too. This improvement in stabilization saved the iPhone 5 from having a DxO Mark Mobile score lower than its predecessor.

The iPhone 5 is probably the most aspirational smartphone on the market, a beautiful object in itself. The test scores also show it to be a very capable piece of photographic equipment whether used as a stills camera or to shoot video.

Photo

DxOMark Mobile Photo

74

Exposure and contrast

88

Color

80

Autofocus

72

Texture

67

Noise

60

Artifacts

81

Flash

70

Pros

Good color and exposure in most lighting conditions (above 20 lux, equivalent to a room with ‘mood’ lighting)

Good retention of detail in bright lighting conditions

Accurate and consistent autofocus

Broad dynamic range

Cons

White balance is yellowish in low tungsten light

Noisy images in low light with poor retention of detail

Bad purple flare in some circumstances

The viewing screen cuts off part of the image so accurate framing is not possible

Video

DxOMark Mobile Video

70

Exposure and contrast

81

Color

92

Autofocus

49

Texture

78

Noise

47

Artifacts

82

Stabilization

54

Pros

Good detail in bright lighting conditions

Image stabilization is good in bright lighting conditions

Good color

Cons

Image stabilization poor in low light

Autofocus needs to be manually triggered and does not accurately focus without some searching

Poor adjustments to exposure when lighting changes and clipping of highlights

Further readings for the Apple iPhone 5

To provide photographers with a broader perspective about mobiles, lenses and cameras, here are links to articles, reviews, and analyses of photographic equipment produced by DxOMark, renown websites, magazines or blogs.

Although this model adopts the same PureView technology as the vaunted 41Mpix Nokia 808, and the more recent Nokia Lumia 1020, this slim-line model has a camera with a much more modest 8.7-Mpix CMOS sensor, yet retains the classy Carl Zeiss lens. Read on to see how well it fares against its siblings and rival offerings.

Sony’s Xperia Z1 is the flagship model adopting a physically larger 1/2.3-inch type CMOS sensor with 20.7M pixel count. It also features a Sony G type lens promising high picture quality, but is it enough to compete with rivals such as the latest Apple iPhone 5S and the 41-Mpix Nokia Lumia 1020? Read on to see how well it fares using our usual industry-standard tests.

Chasseur d'Images, the first European magazine dedicated to photography, has chosen to rely on DxOMark Mobile technology for its new section devoted to smartphone image quality measurement. In its July issue, the magazine reviewed the water-resistant Sony Xperia Z incorporating the report with measurement data supplied by the laboratories at DxOMark.

The photographic industry is split into many sectors, ranging from pure photography to social media (and thus from Pro SLR to smartphone). Some sectors are more “niche” than others. The GoPro HERO3 comes from one of these niche sectors: action cameras. Designed to record extreme sports, they are not like conventional cameras: the emphasis is on rugged build, simple interface, light weight, and predominantly video output. We at DxOMark were curious to test both the still and video quality of this unconventional camera. We were not disappointed: the GoPro HERO3 achieves the highest DxOMark Mobile video score.